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Hi Anda,
Taigu is the expert on the robe. However, normally it is worn by those that have taken the precepts. Although I believe the kesa could be worn by anyone sitting Zazen, according to Dogen in the early days.

One seldom receives a rakusu prior to jukai. You may be granted the permisdion to sew and wear a kesa if you ask a teacher. But. You are not supposed to do it because you have decided this is the way to go. The kesa is not an outfit or something to llok good in it, it has a profound meaning.

Hi Anda,
Taigu is the expert on the robe. However, normally it is worn by those that have taken the precepts. Although I believe the kesa could be worn by anyone sitting Zazen, according to Dogen in the early days.

One seldom receives a rakusu prior to jukai. You may be granted the permisdion to sew and wear a kesa if you ask a teacher. But. You are not supposed to do it because you have decided this is the way to go. The kesa is not an outfit or something to llok good in it, it has a profound meaning.

Gasso

Taigu

Thank you, Taigu. Could you expand a little on that meaning, or point me towards where I can learn about it?

My correct understanding of the kesa comes directly from my teacher. Any misunderstandings are mine alone and introduced by me, an unsui in training.

The Okesa is the teaching itself. It is the body of the Buddha, the fabric of reality. It is square and circular at the same time, wrapped around the body. It is nothing but a few strips of cloth sewn together. It falls apart with the years, like everything else. So, we cannot own the Kesa. It is not "ours".

The rakusu and the kesa are part of the same, seamless, unending reality. There is no difference between them. The kesa you will wear and the kesa Shakyamuni wore is the exact same kesa.

The kesa must be given to us by this reality, through a teacher. But when it is given, nothing is given.

The kesa is a mystery to sit with over many lifetimes. It IS the teaching … not an accessory. There is nothing mysterious about it.

How to make a rakusu?

Cotton grown with water and sun, then cut and
Woven into sheets, dyed a muted hue and cut
Again, into meticulously measured strips.
One long piece, one short piece,
Long on top, then long on the bottom,
Sewn together in an interlocking clasp,
Five times, then all five stitched together.
All in a frame then, with four guardians
On the four directions of the face; two straps
For wearing and a neck piece, pine needle
Stitched in. To the teacher then, who stains
The work, brush dipped in ink and water,
The seal of perfection’s imperfection,
And his circular stamp like the blazing sun.

To continue on from Myozans beginning, the kesa is everything, the whole world, so when we we sit with it wrapped around us we sit with everything as one, thus embodying the teaching as we practice it.

Its importance is endless, and at the same time it is just an piece of cloth to keep the cold out, and nothinng to get upset/stuck about.

The meaning of the robe needs to be discovered for each person and thus cannot be understood until it is sewn. And I don't believe it can ever be fully understood even then! For this vessel commonly called Dosho around this place called Treeleaf, the kesa is a process by which we stitch together the broken pieces of our pesky selves while realizing that there is no I, no me, no you, only us in this moment.

I make a point of never calling the rakusu "my rakusu" since it is not truly mine. It belongs to us all.

Just like sitting, just do it. If you think you are terrific at sewing. Sew it. If you think you are terrible at sewing. Sew it. What you think is not what you are.

It is so simple in description, but in most cases so difficult to see.

Gassho,
Dosho

Ordained Priest -In-TrainingPlease take what I say with a grain of salt,
especially in matters of the Dharma!

The tiny little two cents I'd like to add here are just a little observation. Different from a mighty sceptre, sword or something equally impressive in terms of its overall symbolism, the Kesa is something that can and should be worn as an item that is both humble yet all embracing. It is a perfect brother/sister to the Buddha's begging bowl. All is contained therein, and only those with eyes to see will notice their limitless worth. For others it is just a piece of cloth...

But then maybe it is better to just see a piece of cloth than to ever wear the Kesa as a means to praise and aggrandise oneself.

Cotton grown with water and sun, then cut and
Woven into sheets, dyed a muted hue and cut
Again, into meticulously measured strips.
One long piece, one short piece,
Long on top, then long on the bottom,
Sewn together in an interlocking clasp,
Five times, then all five stitched together.
All in a frame then, with four guardians
On the four directions of the face; two straps
For wearing and a neck piece, pine needle
Stitched in. To the teacher then, who stains
The work, brush dipped in ink and water,
The seal of perfection’s imperfection,
And his circular stamp like the blazing sun.